blackjack
Senior Member
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- Jun 11, 2006
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When I looked into becoming a naturalized US citizen, I was told I would have to renounce my Canadian and give up that passport. Did the immigration attorney give me bad info? Can you actually be a US citizen and a citizen of another country? I thought this was one of those uniquely "American" things, that you cannot be a citizen of the US and another country?
I have both US and Canadian, and my understanding is that it only might be a problem if you're serving in the military. The US is pretty open-minded about dual nationality. I know plenty of people who successfully claimed a second Irish passport As a US citizen, you are required to enter or re-enter the country on your US passport etc. The problems more often occur with other countries who may lay claim on you for military service etc. http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_p.../cis_1753.html
For example, if there are any ethnic Koreans on this board, even though they may have been born and raised in the United States, they could be conscripted into the ROK Army if they visit South Korea. http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_p.../cis_1018.html
There have been several instances in which young U.S. citizen men of Korean descent -- who were born in and lived all of their lives in the United States -- arrived in Korea as tourists only to be drafted into the Republic of Korea army. At least two of these cases involved individuals whose names had been recorded on the Korean Family Relations Certificate without their knowledge. Special permission to visit Korea should be obtained in this instance; please contact the Korean Embassy or a consulate to receive more information before traveling to Korea.